RS 11:163.1 Voluntary or involuntary furlough; service credit; continuation of contributions - Louisiana Statutes

§163.1.  Voluntary or involuntary furlough; service credit; continuation of contributions

A.  The provisions of this Section shall apply to the following state retirement systems:

(1)  Louisiana State Employees' Retirement System.

(2)  Teachers' Retirement System of Louisiana.

B.  Any member of a system enumerated in Subsection A of this Section who is employed at a public college or university or by the governing board or management board of a public college or university and who is involuntarily furloughed without pay, or who voluntarily participates in such a furlough plan implemented as a result of budget reductions shall have the option of accruing service credit for any period of such furlough.  The service credit accrued pursuant to this Section shall be used for calculation of benefits and for purposes of obtaining eligibility for retirement.  The member shall pay the employee contributions to his employer at least monthly, and as otherwise provided by law, which the employer shall send to the system, and the employer shall pay to the system the contributions that would have been otherwise required.  The amounts remitted by the employee and employer shall be based upon the amount the member's earned compensation would have been if not for the furlough.  The earned compensation shall be taken into account for purposes of determining the member's average compensation.

C.  Any service credit accrued pursuant to Subsection B of this Section together with any service credit purchased pursuant to R.S. 11:163 or 429 shall not exceed five years of service credit.

D.  Any participant in the Optional Retirement Plan of the Teachers' Retirement System of Louisiana who is employed at a public college or university or by the governing board or management board of a public college or university and who is involuntarily furloughed without pay, or who voluntarily participates in such a furlough plan implemented as a result of budget reductions shall have the option of having remitted the employee and employer contributions which would have been remitted to the system as provided in R.S. 11:927 if not for the furlough.  Both the employee and employer shall remit the required contributions pursuant to R.S. 11:927 based upon the amount the participant's earned compensation would have been if not for the furlough.

E.  Any member to whom this Section applies and who avails himself of the provisions of this Section shall file an application for the continuation of contributions with the system.  The system shall notify the employer of such application, and the employer shall provide any information requested by the system regarding the member's furloughed status and the duration of such furlough.

F.  The provisions of this Section shall not apply to furloughs which have been mandated as a result of a declaration of financial exigency or force majeure.

G.  The total number of furlough days to which this Section applies shall not exceed thirty days in any fiscal year.

Acts 2009, No. 301, §1, eff. July 1, 2009.